Thousands of Water Bottles are Recycled and Tansformed into Works of Art

Apr 15 2008

A sea turtle, cherry blossom tree, and a Pittsburgh Steelers Terrible Towel are among the fifteen sustainable sculptures created from more than 10,000 recycled plastic water bottles that will be unveiled at shopping centers around the country in celebration of Earth Day.

Created by students at The Art Institutes nationwide, each sculpture celebrates the city in which it was created and is made from 836 empty plastic water bottles, the average number that a family of four will go through in one year(1).

"Our sea turtle was created using recycled materials and it is our hope to demonstrate the importance of making responsible choices with products once they reach the end of their useful life," said Spencer Geraci, an industrial design student who is heading up the sea turtle project with The Art Institute of Pittsburgh. "By showing the sheer volume of space these items engulf, we want viewers to be shocked and to take a moment to realize that simple changes in their daily habits make the difference."

These massive sculptures (up to 10 ft. high) will be unveiled on April 19 at fifteen Forest City retail centers from Chicago to Atlanta to Denver and Las Vegas, turning a regular Saturday shopping day into a day of planet preservation. Shoppers will also be entertained and educated with everything from eco-fashion shows, green cooking demonstrations, sustainable stories at children's story time and crafting from reusable materials. Environmental groups and local organizations will also be on hand to offer tips in their fields at their green booths.

"The Eco-Chic celebration is a fun and educational way for us to practice a company core value -- sustainability -- and extend it to the communities we serve," said Jon Ratner, vice president of sustainability initiatives, Forest City, owner of all 15 participating retail centers. "Preserving our planet for future generations is everyone's job. This is our effort to keep the focus on how each of us can help," he added.

In addition to entertainment, there will be special giveaways and promotions at each center, including:

-- The first 700 guests to bring 10 plastic water bottles for recycling will receive a stylish, black, fold-up, reusable canvas tote bag that says, "I am Eco Chic." Shoppers who reuse these bags can help keep as many as 1,000 disposable bags out of landfills over the next five years(2). -- The first 200 guests who "Pledge to Make the Switch" from incandescent light bulbs to energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs) will receive a free CFL bulb which can last up to 10 times longer than an incandescent, saving up to $44 in energy costs(3). -- Each retail center will donate five percent of gift card sales for the day to The Sierra Club.

Participating centers are: Antelope Valley Mall, Palmdale, Calif.; Ballston Common Mall, Arlington, Va.; The Promenade Bolingbrook, Bolingbrook Ill.; Boulevard Mall, Amherst, N.Y.; Charleston Town Center Mall, Charleston, W. Va.; The Shops at Northfield Stapleton, Denver, Colo.; The Mall at Robinson, Pittsburgh, Pa.; Short Pump Town Center, Richmond, Va.; Simi Valley Town Center, Simi Valley, Calif.; South Bay Galleria, Redondo Beach, Calif.; Mall at Stonecrest, Lithonia, Ga.; Galleria at Sunset, Henderson, Nev.; The Promenade in Temecula, Temecula, Calif.; Victoria Gardens, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. and The Orchard Town Center, Westminster, Colo.

Forest City Commercial Development is a unit of Forest City Enterprises, Inc. a $10 billion NYSE-listed national real estate company. The Company is principally engaged in the ownership, development, management and acquisition of commercial and residential real estate and land throughout the United States.

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